On October 3rd, The Anthem DC opened its doors, glittering industrial staircases, and numerous bars to fans ready for a night of absolute chaos. The Hive Mind tour brought together hardcore heavy-hitters Knocked Loose with Denzel Curry’s rapid-fire rhymes for a night of aggressive beats and raw intensity.
Connecticut’s Boundaries wasted no time getting the crowd lathered up for the night, starting things off with an absolutely bone-rattling rendition of Malconscience. There was no time for “warming up”, as the band unleashed a relentless aural assault on the audience that had the crowd surfing and charging full speed into a wall of death.
PA’s Superheaven took to the stage next, trading in the wall of death for a wall of sound. Their 90’s infused heavy reverb and sludgy guitars mixed with low cool lights gave the crowd some breathing room and held them in a trance-like atmospheric sway.
Bookended by two giant Scythe characters, a masked Denzel Curry arrived on stage and quickly snapped the audience out of their reverie with the bass-heavy Hit The Floor, and continued to deliver with a robust 20 track set. Denzel had the entire place jumping, the whole building seeming to move with the collective energy. Making my way through the venue during the set, I saw everyone invested in the moment, from crowd surfers making their way to the barricade to ardent fans in the balconies, feeding off every beat. The set closer was a cover of Rage Against The Machine’s Killing In The Name/ Bulls on Parade, which had the crowd yelling along to every word.
And for Knocked Loose? Imagine being a photographer ready to photograph the first three songs of the set. A staff member who works the barricade pulls you aside and says, “I know you’re allowed to photograph the first three songs…. but if it gets too hectic up here, we’ll have to ask you to clear out for your safety, so get what you need quickly. Also, there is pyro, so you’ll need to be mindful of that, and stand back. (A shoutout to the staff for keeping everyone’s safety top of mind!) And Knocked Loose brought the fire in every way.
They ignited the stage with intro Killing You and Deep in the Willow, fittingly surrounded by huge willow trees, smoke roiling across the stage to menace the audience. A huge imposing neon cross and gothic church background further anchored the set in the Knocked Loose universe. There wasn’t just one pit that could hold all the avid fans. People were two-stepping and pushing their closest friends around the fringes of the mayhem before making their way back to the middle of the floor for a more thorough beating.
Song highlights included Boundaries’ Matt McDougal coming out for Billy No Mates, and the newest single Hive Mind, where Denzel Curry made his way back to the stage for the intense collab. The set climaxed with a version of Suffocate so heavy, that I heard one fan afterward saying they nearly did, before closing with a version of Counting Worms where vocalist Bryan Garris adamantly demanded everyone put their phones away to get in the pit.
This show delivered a dynamic flow of energy from start to finish. From floor to ceiling, people came to be part of the sound and the scene, and every performance met the moment relentlessly.
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